INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — A Blue Springs man is being remembered as a Good Samaritan by his family after he died helping passengers in a overturned SUV.
It happened about 2 a.m. Monday when a Chevrolet Equinox ran off eastbound Interstate 70 at Lee’s Summit Road in Independence, Missouri.
Robert Piper and his family were driving behind the SUV when it overturned and his instinct to help prevailed.
Robert safely stepped out of his car on the passenger side to make sure everyone in the vehicle in front of him was OK.
That’s when a Ford F-150 driving down the interstate crashed into him and the overturned Equinox.
The crash killed Robert and one passenger in the overturned car.
The Piper family is and will continue to be shaken by what happened, but they told KSHB 41’s Elyse Schoenig they want people to remember him not as the victim of a crash, but for his character.
“I’m just in disbelief, I just can’t believe it,” Robert’s wife Traci said. "He liked everything I liked, we were best friends."
Traci Piper can hardly comprehend how much her life has changed since Monday.
"He was so good to everyone. But not only do good, he just was good. The best human being I've ever met,” she said.
Traci describes Robert as a loving father and husband, an Andy Cohen enthusiast and even a Tik Tok maker, thanks to her.
"He'd do everything with me. Even Tik Toks!" Traci said.
Robert Piper’s final moments became a tragedy, but it also summed up how he lived: anything to help anyone.
"He was the closest thing to an angel I've ever known. He was the perfect person,” Traci said.
Independence Police said the crash is still under investigation.
